Looks black as it claims to with a tiny ,mocha head. Smell is of hops, malt, caught a whiff of lemon. Each sip starts out like an IPA, mouth full of hops, but with a creamy aftertaste. Truly succeeds in being a creamy IPA unlike a hoppy porter, like some other black IPAs I've had. Damn good.

A - Poured out one finger of mocha colored head with a pitch black body. Looks delicious. Yeast is present in the bottom of the bottle, which I would recommend pouring in which adds some flavor. Also above average lacing.

S - A whiff of this brings a balance that plays well with the piney hops and the black chocolate malts. There is a complexity within these two notes as they battle to overtake one another.

T - Here comes the piney bitterness with a nice follow up punch of the black malts. Next sip is chocolate malts followed by piney, grassy bitterness. The bitterness lingers on with the creamy chocolate notes. Not much alcohol present in this one for the 8.5%.

M - Medium to full mouth feel with a soft fluffy creaminess. Carbonation is present but the softness of the beer somehow covers it up as it goes down, in the end some carbonation starts to show through. Lovely.

O - This is the last of the six pack that was given to me as a B-Day present from a buddy of mine. All I can say is this is my all time favorite Black IPA and the best offering I have tried from shorts.! If you want an awesome black IPA this is a must try. Its to bad this is a seasonal beer, and I will have to wait almost another whole year to get some more. This beer is best fresh but with some age on it it smooths out considerably. Get this one Cheers!